Snuggles, kisses, hugs and extra love were given to eight large dog breeds that were up for adoption at the adoption day hosted by the city of Santa Clarita and Castaic Animal Care Center at the Mitchell River House on Saturday.
Sara Cohen was walking out with Alvee, her newly adopted Husky, ready to give him a new home where he would be safe and experience a lot of love and affection.
Cohen, who strictly only rescues dogs, lost her Husky in December and she wasn’t expecting to go home with a new pet on Saturday.
She was excited to take Alvee home and “train him, love him, go on long walks and just me being there for him and him being there for me,” she said.
Alvee and Cohen even had the chance to take home a new donated toy and free goodies.
Alvee was one out of three successful adoptions on the day. Castaic Animal Care Center volunteers were very happy with the outcome, especially for Toby, a 13-year-old senior dog that was also taken to a new home and given a second chance, a difficult thing for older rescues.
The city of Santa Clarita partnered with the Castaic Animal Shelter to help raise awareness, and provide a way for local residents to meet and greet with animals locally, said Tracy Sullivan, community preservation manager for the city.
“The city is really trying to bring more awareness to the services offered by the Castaic Animal Care Center and also build greater accessibility,” Sullivan said.
Although not all of the dogs were adopted on Saturday, the Castaic Animal Care Center is optimistic their time will come, and shelter officials are hoping future adoption events will become a monthly occurrence.
Kelsey Tarleton, an animal control officer and volunteer liaison for the Castaic shelter, said that the shelter can get overcrowded very quickly due to its smaller size, which is why they host pet adoption days.
The goal is to find forever homes for the rescued animals so they can continue bringing in new dogs and cats through their doors and the animals won’t meet unfortunate fates due to their circumstances.
The Castaic Animal Care Center must euthanize animals who have been at the facility after a specific time frame due to overcrowding.
For a successful adoption rate, the shelter also waived all adoption fees so those interested in taking home a new furry friend would feel more compelled to do so at no additional costs.
Tarleton added that she loves animals, and her experience has consisted of “all aspects” of animal control.
She has done work in the kennel, office, and officer field work and now volunteers with the Castaic Animal Care Center.
“I’ve been the person bringing them in and now I’ve been the person to get them out,” said Tarleton.
For more information about the Castaic Animal Care Center and to see rescued animals up for adoption visit: https://animalcare.lacounty.gov/
